Diggs confident he’ll shoot better

Steve Addy

Thursday, Oct. 19, 2000 | 9:58 a.m.

Just because the Rebels have added a highly recruited shooting guard doesn't mean Trevor Diggs intends to hand over his starting job without a fight.

Guys from Brooklyn don't back down that easily.

Unless Juco newcomer Jermaine Lewis can wrestle away the job, it belongs to Diggs, a 6-foot-3 senior whose first UNLV season had more lows than highs, but closed in a relatively upbeat way.

After finishing 10th in Mountain West scoring with 14.2 points a game, Diggs played a prominent role in UNLV's three-game push to the MWC tournament title. He averaged 17.2 points and shot 51.4 percent (18-of-35), and probably should have made the all-tournament team.

Though Diggs and the rest of the Rebels finished the season abysmally in the NCAA tournament against Tulsa, his performance in the MWC event removed all doubt that Diggs belongs in Division I and deserves every chance to remain the starter.

"It's the coaches' decision, but the way I am looking at it now, I should be the starter," Diggs said Wednesday. "Even though I didn't shoot very well last season, I was the starting two-guard on a team that won the conference and made the NCAA Tournament."

With his late-season improvement fresh in his mind, Diggs thinks he is well equipped to head off the challenge of Lewis, his friend and former teammate at Kilgore College in Texas. Lewis comes in with a lot of hype, having averaged 26 points last season as a second-team JC all-American.

"When we signed J-Lew, I was so happy," Diggs said. "I know what he can do. He is a great shooter. Having him here will really take a lot off of my shoulders. Last year, I was really the only outside shooter we had. If I was on, I was on. If I was off, we were going to lose.

"Now I don't have to be the main shooter. I won't be tense when I come into the game. Now I can just relax and let my shot go nice and easy. I think I'll shoot better because of that."

Diggs' confidence and sense of belonging were not always so clear last season. He was wildly inconsistent as a shooter and often allowed misses to hurt his defense and concentration. He suffered through a 13-of-58 slump over a five-game stretch from Jan. 17 to Feb. 5.

That doesn't include other games in which he went 6-of-24 (Georgetown), 4-of-17 (Princeton), 6-of-20 (Cincinnati), 2-of-19 (High Point), 2-of-11 (Utah) and 2-of-10 (San Diego State).

But despite his 33.8 regular-season field goal percentage, Diggs had some good days, too. He shot 50 percent or better against Nevada-Reno (8-of-16), Air Force twice (11-of-17, 8-of-14) and BYU (7-of-14).

The latter game turned into one of Diggs' worst days, however. He could have sent the Rebels into first place Feb. 19 at Provo, but missed a spinning, last-second 17-footer for an 83-82 UNLV loss. He was inconsolable afterward, breaking down in tears on the court.

But to Diggs' credit, he didn't get defeated. His defense got better as the season progressed -- his 51 steals led the team -- and he played solidly on both ends in the MWC tournament.

"I was very satisfied with how I played in the tournament," Diggs said, after reciting his tournament stats verbatim. "I showed that I could hit shots, and a lot of people came up to me and said, 'I knew you could do it.' I felt like I proved myself."

Diggs' performance also provided vindication to coach Bill Bayno, who had taken heat for not benching Diggs while he struggled. Bayno would merely give Diggs another pep talk, tell him not to force shots and keep playing defense.

Bayno said he has made no decisions on starting jobs, but senses a more confident Diggs in practice.

"Trevor isn't getting down on himself. He isn't getting frustrated. He's more efficient, I can see that already," Bayno said. "Usually with JC kids, things become easier in their second year (in Division I). The game comes easier, they have a better understanding, they let the game come to them.

"I think Trevor realizes that as long as he takes good shots, he doesn't have to hit every shot to help us win."

On Bayno's orders, Vince Booker has become Johnson's designated harrasser in practice. Since opposing teams will surely try to shake up a freshman point guard, Bayno has had Booker hounding Johnson in every scrimmage.

"(Johnson) has handled it well. He doesn't get rattled easily," Bayno said. ...

Today will be the Rebels' first off-day since practice began Saturday.